System and method of utilizing information from a social media service in an ecommerce service

ABSTRACT

A system and method of utilizing information from a social media service in an ecommerce system are provided. Log-in information for a social media service of a user of an ecommerce service may be received. Then, information may be retrieved from the social media service using the log-in information. This information can then be used to alter a reputation rating for a user in the ecommerce system or to form a trading circle with other users of the ecommerce system.

BACKGROUND

Advancements in computer and networking technology enable users andentities to conduct various types of online activities viacomputer-based applications and systems. These online activities mayinclude offering items for purchase through listings in a network-basedmarketplace. Buyers and sellers, however, may be concerned about therisks of conducting transactions with unknown and/or anonymous parties.A reputation system can be utilized to help alleviate these concerns.Traditionally, such a system involves feedback from previoustransactions being used to calculating a reputation rating for a partyin the online marketplace. Newer users, however, may not have engaged inenough transactions for a proper rating and other users may be unwillingto engage in transactions until a good reputation rating is established,thereby creating a vicious circle where new users are unable to engagein the very transactions they need in order to build a good reputation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a network diagram depicting a network system, according to oneembodiment, having a client-server architecture configured forexchanging data over a network.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a network environment, accordingto some embodiments.

FIG. 3 is an example block diagram illustrating multiple componentsthat, in one example embodiment, are provided within a publicationsystem of a networked system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a data-mining module, accordingto some embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating social applications that executeon a social networking server, such as one located on a third-partyplatform, according to an example embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a database, according to anembodiment, at the social networking server.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a system, in accordance with anexample embodiment, of utilizing information from a social media servicein an ecommerce service.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a system, in accordance with anexample embodiment, of utilizing information from a social media servicein an ecommerce service.

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram illustrating a method, in accordance withanother example embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating a method, in accordance withanother example embodiment.

FIG. 11 shows a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the exampleform of a computer system within which a set of instructions for causingthe machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussedherein may be executed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The description that follows includes illustrative systems, methods,techniques, instruction sequences, and computing machine programproducts that embody illustrative embodiments. In the followingdescription, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details areset forth in order to provide an understanding of various embodiments.It will be evident, however, to those skilled in the art thatembodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In general,well-known instruction instances, protocols, structures, and techniqueshave not been shown in detail.

Although the present embodiments have been described with reference tospecific example embodiments, it will be evident that variousmodifications and changes may be made to these embodiments withoutdeparting from the broader spirit and scope of the embodiments.Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in anillustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

In an example embodiment, information from social media services (suchas Facebook™ or Twitter™) can be used by an ecommerce service (such aseBay™ or PayPal™) to enhance reputation ratings and/or create onlinetrading communities based on interest. The information utilized fromsocial media services for these purposes could be any information thatmay be helpful in determining a reputation rating or creating an onlinetrading community. In an example embodiment, information from a userprofile, such as interest information, number of friends or contacts,mutual contacts, etc. can be used. In another example embodiment,communications from within the social media services may be monitoredfor information that may be helpful for these purposes. In an exampleembodiment, users of an ecommerce service may provide login information(e.g., username and password) for the social media services to theecommerce service and the ecommerce service may link this logininformation to a user's ecommerce service account. In this manner, theecommerce service may obtain or otherwise derive the information withoutneeding additional user intervention.

FIG. 1 is a network diagram depicting a network system 100, according toone embodiment, having a client-server architecture configured forexchanging data over a network. For example, the network system 100 mayinclude a network-based publisher 102 where clients may communicate andexchange data within the network system 100. The data may pertain tovarious functions (e.g., online item purchases) and aspects (e.g.,managing content) associated with the network system 100 and its users.Although illustrated herein as a client-server architecture as anexample, other embodiments may include other network architectures, suchas a peer-to-peer or distributed network environment.

A data exchange platform, in an example form of a network-basedpublisher 102, may provide server-side functionality, via a network 104(e.g., the Internet, wireless network, cellular network, or a Wide AreaNetwork (WAN)) to one or more clients. The one or more clients mayinclude users that utilize the network system 100 and more specifically,the network-based publisher 102, to exchange data over the network 104.These transactions may include transmitting, receiving (communicating)and processing data to, from, and regarding content and users of thenetwork system 100. The data may include, but are not limited to,content and user data such as feedback data; user profiles; userattributes; product attributes; product and service reviews; product,service, manufacturer, and vendor recommendations and identifiers;social network commentary; product and service listings associated withbuyers and sellers; auction bids; and transaction data, among otherthings.

In various embodiments, the data exchanges within the network system 100may be dependent upon user-selected functions available through one ormore client or user interfaces (UIs). The UIs may be associated with aclient device, such as a client device 110 using a web client 106. Theweb client 106 may be in communication with the network-based publisher102 via a web server 116. The UIs may also be associated with a clientdevice 112 using a programmatic client 108, such as a clientapplication. It can be appreciated that in various embodiments theclient devices 110, 112 may be associated with a buyer, a seller, athird party electronic commerce platform, a payment service provider, ora shipping service provider, each in communication with thenetwork-based publisher 102 and optionally each other. The buyers andsellers may be any one of individuals, merchants, or service providers,among other things. The client devices 110 and 112 may comprise a mobilephone, desktop computer, laptop, or any other communication device thata user may use to access the network-based publisher 102.

Turning specifically to the network-based publisher 102, an applicationprogram interface (API) server 114 and a web server 116 are coupled to,and provide programmatic and web interfaces respectively to, one or moreapplication servers 118. The application servers 118 host one or morepublication systems(s) 120 and one or more payment systems 122. Theapplication servers 118 are, in turn, shown to be coupled to one or moredatabase server(s) 124 that facilitate access to one or more database(s)126.

In one embodiment, the web server 116 and the API server 114 communicateand receive data pertaining to products, listings, transactions, socialnetwork commentary and feedback, among other things, via various userinput tools. For example, the web server 116 may send and receive datato and from a toolbar or webpage on a browser application (e.g., webclient 106) operating on a client device (e.g., client device 110). TheAPI server 114 may send and receive data to and from an application(e.g., programmatic client 108) running on another client device (e.g.,client device 112).

The publication system 120 publishes content on a network (e.g., theInternet). As such, the publication system 120 provides a number ofpublication and marketplace functions and services to users that accessthe network-based publisher 102. For example, the publication system(s)120 may provide a number of services and functions to users for listinggoods and/or services for sale, facilitating transactions, and reviewingand providing feedback about transactions and associated users.Additionally, the publication system(s) 120 may track and store data andmetadata relating to products, listings, transactions, and userinteraction with the network-based publisher 102. The publicationsystem(s) 120 may aggregate the tracked data and metadata to performdata mining to identify trends or patterns in the data. The publicationsystem 120 is discussed in more detail in connection with FIG. 3. Whilethe publication system 120 is discussed in terms of a marketplaceenvironment, it is noted that the publication system 120 may beassociated with a non-marketplace environment.

The payment system 122 provides a number of payment services andfunctions to users. The payment system 122 allows users to accumulatevalue (e.g., in a commercial currency, such as the U.S. dollar, or aproprietary currency, such as “points”) in accounts, and then later toredeem the accumulated value for products (e.g., goods or services) thatare made available via the publication system 120. The payment system122 also facilitates payments from a payment mechanism (e.g., a bankaccount, PayPal account, or credit card) for purchases of items via thenetwork-based marketplace. While the publication system 120 and thepayment system 122 are shown in FIG. 1 to both form part of thenetwork-based publisher 102, it will be appreciated that, in alternativeembodiments, the payment system 122 may form part of a payment servicethat is separate and distinct from the network-based publisher 102.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a network environment 200,according to some embodiments. Referring to FIG. 2, a client device 110executing a web client 106 and a client device 112 executing aprogrammatic client 108 may communicate with a network-based publisher102, as described with respect to FIG. 1, or a third-party platform 204via the network 104. In some embodiments, the third-party platform 204may be a social networking platform, a gaming platform, or anothernetwork-based publisher platform. In some embodiments, the network-basedpublisher 102 may publish content or applications (e.g., games, socialnetworking applications) on the third-party platform 204 either directlyor via the network 104. As client devices 110, 112 interact withthird-party platform 204, the network-based publisher 102 may receivedata pertaining to the interactions. The data may be received throughthe use of API calls to open a connection or transmit data between thenetwork-based publisher 102 and the third-party platform 204.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an example block diagram illustrating multiplecomponents that, in one example embodiment, are provided within thepublication system 120 of the network-based publisher 102 (see FIG. 1),is shown. The publication system 120 may be hosted on dedicated orshared server machines (not shown) that are communicatively coupled toenable communications between the server machines. The multiplecomponents themselves are communicatively coupled (e.g., via appropriateinterfaces), either directly or indirectly, to each other and to variousdata sources, to allow information to be passed between the componentsor to allow the components to share and access common data. Furthermore,the components may access the one or more database(s) 126 via the one ormore database servers 124, both shown in FIG. 1.

In one embodiment, the publication system 120 provides a number ofpublishing, listing, and price-setting mechanisms whereby a seller maylist (or publish information concerning) goods or services for sale, abuyer can express interest in or indicate a desire to purchase suchgoods or services, and a price can be set for a transaction pertainingto the goods or services. To this end, the publication system 120 maycomprise at least one publication engine 302 and one or more auctionengines 304 that support auction-format listing and price settingmechanisms (e.g., English, Dutch, Chinese, Double, reverse auctions,etc.). The various auction engines 304 also provide a number of featuresin support of these auction-format listings, such as a reserve pricefeature whereby a seller may specify a reserve price in connection witha listing, and a proxy-bidding feature whereby a bidder may invokeautomated proxy bidding.

A pricing engine 306 supports various price listing formats. One suchformat is a fixed-price listing format (e.g., the traditional classifiedadvertisement-type listing or a catalog listing). Another formatcomprises a buyout-type listing. Buyout-type listings (e.g., theBuy-It-Now (BIN) technology developed by eBay Inc., of San Jose, Calif.)may be offered in conjunction with auction-format listings and may allowa buyer to purchase goods or services, which are also being offered forsale via an auction, for a fixed price that is typically higher than astarting price of an auction for an item.

A store engine 308 allows a seller to group listings within a “virtual”store, which may be branded and otherwise personalized by and for theseller. Such a virtual store may also offer promotions, incentives, andfeatures that are specific and personalized to the seller. In oneexample, the seller may offer a plurality of items as Buy-It-Now itemsin the virtual store, offer a plurality of items for auction, or acombination of both.

A reputation engine 310 allows users that transact, utilizing thenetwork-based publisher 102, to establish, build, and maintainreputations. These reputations may be made available and published topotential trading partners. Because the publication system 120 supportsperson-to-person trading between unknown entities, users may otherwisehave no history or other reference information whereby thetrustworthiness and credibility of potential trading partners may beassessed. For example, the reputation engine 310 allows a user, throughfeedback provided by one or more other transaction partners, toestablish a reputation within the network-based publication system 120over time. Other potential trading partners may then reference thereputation for purposes of assessing credibility and trustworthiness.

Navigation of the network-based publication system 120 may befacilitated by a navigation module 312. For example, a search engine(not shown) of the navigation module 312 enables keyword searches oflistings published via the publication system 120. In a further example,a browse engine (not shown) of the navigation module 312 allows users tobrowse various categories, catalogs, or inventory data structuresaccording to which listings may be classified within the publicationsystem 120. The search engine and the browse engine may provideretrieved search results or browsed listings to a client device 110,112.Various other navigation applications within the navigation engine 312may be provided to supplement the searching and browsing applications.

In order to make listings available via the network-based publisher 102as visually informing and attractive as possible, the publication system120 may include a data mining engine 314 that enables users to uploadimages for inclusion within listings and to incorporate images withinviewed listings. The data mining engine 314 also receives social datafrom a user and utilizes the social data to identify an item depicted ordescribed by the social data.

An API engine 316 stores API information for various third-partyplatforms 204 and interfaces. For example, the API engine 316 may storeAPI calls used to interface with a third-party platform 204. In theevent a publication system(s) 120 is to contact a third-partyapplication or platform 204, the API engine 316 may provide theappropriate API call to use to initiate contact. In some embodiments,the API engine 316 may receive parameters to be used for a call to athird-party application or platform 204 and may generate the proper APIcall to initiate the contact.

A listing creation and management engine 318 (which could be a separatecreation engine and a separate management engine) allows sellers tocreate and manage listings. Specifically, where a particular seller hasauthored or published a large number of listings, the management of suchlistings may present a challenge. The listing creation and managementengine 318 provides a number of features (e.g., auto-relisting,inventory level monitors, etc.) to assist the seller in managing suchlistings.

A post-listing management engine 320 also assists sellers with a numberof activities that typically occur post-listing. For example, uponcompletion of an auction facilitated by the one or more auction engines304, a seller may wish to leave feedback regarding a particular buyer.To this end, the post-listing management engine 320 provides aninterface to the reputation engine 310 allowing the seller toconveniently provide feedback regarding multiple buyers to thereputation engine 310.

A messaging engine 322 is responsible for the generation and delivery ofmessages to users of the network-based publisher 102. Such messagesinclude, for example, advising users regarding the status of listingsand best offers (e.g., providing an acceptance notice to a buyer whomade a best offer to a seller). The messaging engine 322 may utilize anyone of a number of message delivery networks and platforms to delivermessages to users. For example, the messaging engine 322 may deliverelectronic mail (e-mail), an instant message (IM), a Short MessageService (SMS), text, facsimile, or voice (e.g., Voice over IP (VoIP))messages via wired networks (e.g., the Internet), a Plain Old TelephoneService (POTS) network, or wireless networks (e.g., mobile, cellular,Wi-Fi, WiMAX).

A data-mining engine 324 analyzes the data gathered by the network-basedpublisher 102 from interactions between the client devices 110, 112 andthe network-based publisher 102. In some embodiments, the data miningengine 324 also analyzes the data gathered by the network basedpublisher 102 from interactions between components of the network-basedpublisher 102 and/or client devices 110, 112 and third-party platforms204, such as social networks like Twitter™, and also publications, suchas eBay and Amazon. The data-mining engine 324 uses the data to identifycertain trends or patterns in the data. For example, the data-miningengine 324 may identify patterns, which may help to improve search queryprocessing, user profiling, and identification of relevant searchresults, among other things.

A taxonomy engine (not pictured) uses the patterns and trends identifiedby the data mining engine 324 to obtain a variety of data, includingproducts, item listings, search queries, keywords, search results, andindividual attributes of items, users, or products, among other things,and revise the publication system 120 taxonomy as discussed below. Insome embodiments, the taxonomy engine 326 may assign a score to eachpiece of data based on the frequency of occurrence of the piece of datain the mined set of data. In some embodiments, the taxonomy engine 326may assign or adjust a score of a piece of data pertaining to an item(e.g., one or more keywords with logic, a product listing, an individualattribute of the item) based on input data received from users. Thescore may represent a relevance of the piece of data to the item or anaspect of the item. In some embodiments, the taxonomy engine 326 maycompare data received from the third party platform 204 to previouslyreceived and stored data from the third party platform 204.Alternatively, the taxonomy engine may compare data received from thethird party platform 204 with data in the publication system's 120 owntaxonomy.

Although the various components of the publication system 120 have beendefined in terms of a variety of individual modules, a skilled artisanwill recognize that many of the items can be combined or organized inother ways. Furthermore, not all components of the publication system120 have been included in FIG. 3. In general, components, protocols,structures, and techniques not directly related to functions of exampleembodiments (e.g., dispute resolution engine, loyalty promotion engine,personalization engines, etc.) have not been shown or discussed indetail. The description given herein simply provides a variety ofexample embodiments to aid the reader in an understanding of the systemsand methods used herein.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the data-mining engine 324,according to some embodiments. Information may be mined from socialmedia websites and communications, such as from Facebook™ and Twitter™feeds. Referring to FIG. 4, an interface module 402 may store componentsused to interface with a third party platform such as 204 of FIG. 2 fromwhich data is mined. The third party platform 204 could be from eBayand/or Amazon, or from a social network such as Twitter™. Interfacingwith third party platforms 204 may entail providing data related toitems about which searches or opinions from users of the third partyplatform 204 are solicited. The user input may include search keywords,descriptions, opinions, or other text, along with non-textual input,such as clicks, highlighting, and other interactions with the provideditem text and visual data.

A collection module 404 collects the data mined from the third partyplatform 204. For mining Twitter™, tweets and retweets of a particularsearch may be included. In some embodiments the publication system 120may also store Twitter™ IDs, their bio, location, how many followers,their following, and similar information that may be publicallyavailable from the social network. In some embodiments, the collectionmodule 404 interfaces with the third party platform 204 directly andcollects data entered by the user. In some embodiments, the collectionmodule 404 collects the data from the interface module 402.

A database module 406 interfaces with one or more databases such as thedatabase 126 of FIG. 1 to store the data collected by the collectionmodule 404. The database module 406 also interfaces with the one or moredatabases 126 to retrieve data related to the items presented in thethird party platform 204. For example, the database module 406 mayretrieve searches related to a certain product and provide the searchesto the third party platform 204 for purposes of comparing a user'ssearch to previously stored searches. Based on the comparison, theinterface module 402 or the taxonomy engine 326 may revise thepublication system's 120 taxonomy.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating social platform applications 500that execute on a social networking server, such as one located on athird-party platform 204 of FIG. 2, according to an example embodiment.The social platform applications 500 include news feed applications 502,profile applications 504, note applications 506, forum applications 508,search applications 510, relationship applications 512, networkapplications 514, communication applications 516, account applications518, photo applications 520, event applications 522, and groupapplications 524.

The news feed applications 502 publish events associated with the userand friends of the user on the social networking server. The news feedapplications 502 may publish the events on the user profile of a user.For example, the news feed applications 502 may publish the uploading ofa photo album by one user on the user profile of the user and the userprofiles of friends of the user.

The profile applications 504 may maintain user profiles for each of theusers on the social networking server. Further, the profile applications504 may enable a user to restrict access to selected parts of theirprofile to prevent viewing by other users. The note applications 506 maybe used to author notes that may be published on various userinterfaces.

The forum applications 508 may maintain a forum in which users may postcomments and display the forum via the profile associated with a user.The user may add comments to the forum, remove comments from the forum,and restrict visibility to other users. In addition, other users maypost comments to the forum.

The search applications 510 may enable a user to perform a keywordsearch for users, groups, and events. In addition, the searchapplications 510 may enable a user to search for content (e.g., favoritemovies) on profiles accessible to the user.

The relationship applications 512 may maintain relationship informationfor the users. The network applications 514 may facilitate the additionof social networks by a user, with the social networks based on aschool, workplace, or region, or any social construct for which the usermay prove an affiliation. The communication applications 516 may processincoming and outgoing messages, maintain an inbox for each user,facilitate sharing of content, facilitate interaction among friends(e.g., poking), process requests, process events, process groupinvitations, and process communication notifications.

The account applications 518 may provide services to facilitateregistering, updating, and deleting user accounts. The photoapplications 520 may provide services to upload photographs, arrangephotographs, set privacy options for albums, and tag photographs withtext strings. The event applications 522 may provide services to createevents, review upcoming events, and review past events. The groupapplications 524 may be used to maintain group information, displaygroup information, and navigate to groups.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a database 600, according to anembodiment, at the social networking server. The database 600 is shownto include social platform user profile information 602 that stores userprofile information 604 for each user on the social networking server.The user profile information 604 may include information related to theuser and, specifically, may include relationship information 606 andblock information 608. The relationship information 606 may store apredetermined relationship between the user associated with the userprofile information 604 and other users on the social networking server.For example, a first user may be designated a “friend,” “favoritefriend,” or the like, with a second user, with the first user associatedwith the user profile information 604 and the respective designationsassociated with increasing levels of disclosure between the first userand second user. The block information 608 may store a configuredpreference of the user to block the addition of an item by other usersto a watch list associated with the user. In some instances, one or morecomponents of the network-based publisher 102 of FIG. 1 may be able toaccess specified portions of the database 600 via, for example, aprogrammatic interface. As such, data from the database may be mined.

In an example embodiment, social media communications (e.g., posts on asocial media website, such as Facebook™ or distributed through Twitter™feeds) may be mined for information that may be relevant to adetermination of one or more items of an ecommerce system.

Referring back to FIG. 3, in an example embodiment, the reputationengine 310 may maintain a mapping to one or more social media services.The reputation engine 310 may access a database, such as database 126 ofFIG. 1, to obtain login information for social media services, the logininformation corresponding to user accounts of the ecommerce service.Thus, when the reputation engine 310 calculates a reputation rating fora particular user, the reputation engine 310 may obtain logininformation for various social media services for which the particularuser subscribes or otherwise is a member. The reputation engine 310 mayalso maintain a mapping for one or more social media services. Themapping may contain information indicating what type of information isto be extracted from each of the one or more social media services, andhow such information should be extracted. The mapping may also indicatehow the reputation engine 310 should use such information. For example,the mapping may indicate that, if the user has a Facebook account, theaccount should be accessed using the user's saved login information. Themapping may further indicate particular fields of the profile thatshould be accessed, such as a field indicating the number of friends theuser has. The mapping may further indicate that the users' reputationrating should be boosted by 3 points if the user has more than 300friends, by 2 points if the user has 200-300 friends, and by 1 point ifthe user has 100-200 friends.

In another example embodiment, the reputation engine 310 may dynamicallyalter a reputation rating for a user based on whether or not the userhas a mutual friend with the user on the other side of the transaction.For example, a buyer who has a mutual friend in common with a seller mayget a boost in his or her reputation rating when viewed by the seller,as opposed to a buyer with no such mutual friend in common who may notget such a boost.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a system 700, in accordance withan example embodiment, of utilizing information from a social mediaservice in an ecommerce service. Here, the reputation engine 310accesses a database 126 that includes user login information for theuser 702. The user 702 has an account with the ecommerce service 704 andan account with one or more social media services 706 a, 706 b, and 706n. The reputation engine 310 retrieves the login information for one ormore of the social media services 706 a, 706 b, 706 n from the database126. The user 702 previously has provided this login information to theecommerce service 704, which has linked it to the user's account. In analternative example embodiment, the user 702 provides the log-ininformation in real time, in the form of a wizard or similar successionof screens that request the user log-in to the user's account at the oneor more social media services 706 a, 706 b, 706 n from inside theecommerce service 704.

The reputation engine 310 also can access memory 708, which stores amapping 710 between the ecommerce service 704 and the one or more socialmedia services 706 a, 706 b, 706 n. This mapping 710 may contain variousfields 712 a, 712 b, 712 c. One field 712 a may provide information onhow to access the corresponding social media service 706 a, 706 b, and706 n. Another field 712 b may provide information on what informationto retrieve from the corresponding social media service 706 a, 706 b,706 n (e.g., a listing of fields from which to retrieve the data and thecorresponding locations of the fields in this listing). Another field712 c may provide information on how to use the information retrievedfrom the corresponding social media service 706 a, 706 b, 706 n toaffect the reputation rating (e.g., ranges of values that providecorresponding modifications to the reputation rating). The reputationengine 310 may then access one or more of the social media services 706a, 706 b, 706 n using the information from the mapping 710, and applythe retrieved information using the information from the mapping 710,thus altering the reputation rating of the user 702.

Either alternatively or in conjunction with such use of the reputationengine 310, information from social media services 706 a, 706 b and 706n may also be utilized to automatically form trading circles. Referringback to FIG. 3, the publication engine 302 may access a database, suchas database 126 of FIG. 1, to obtain log-in information for social mediaservices 706 a, 706 b, and 706 n, the log-in information correspondingto user accounts of the ecommerce service 704. The publication engine302 may then form one or more trading circles within the ecommerceservice 704 based on information from the social media services 706 a,706 b, and 706 n. A trading circle may be a closed set of users whoseecommerce listings and/or activities are shared only with other users ofthe trading circle. For example, a trading circle formed for fans of aparticular brand of remote control cars may have a circle automaticallyformed including users whose social media service interactions indicatethat they are fans of the particular brand of remote control cars. Thistrading circle may allow, for example, these users to offer to selltheir collectible cars of this particular brand only to the other usersin the trading circle. The trading circle allows for a feeling of trustbetween the users and fosters an environment where users are more likelyto part with goods having sentimental value or difficult-to-sell items.

As with the reputation rating, the information gleaned from social mediaservices 706 a, 706 b, and 706 n that can be used to form these tradingcircles may vary. In one example embodiment, information such as userinterests listed in a user profile may be used (e.g., “I am a fan of thebrand X remote control cars”). In another example embodiment,communications within the social media services 706 a, 706 b, and 706 nmay be monitored to determine user interest (e.g., the user may speak tofriends a lot about brand X remote control cars).

As with the reputation aspects described above, a mapping 710 may bemaintained by the publication engine 302. The mapping 710 may containinformation indicating what type of information is to be extracted fromeach of the one or more social media services 706 a, 706 b, and 706 n,and how such information should be extracted. The mapping 710 may alsoindicate how the publication engine 302 should use such information.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a system 800, in accordance withan example embodiment, of utilizing information from a social mediaservice 806 a, 806 b, 806 n in an ecommerce service 804. Here, thepublication engine 302 accesses a database 126 that includes user logininformation for the user 802. The user 802 has an account with theecommerce service 804 but also has an account with one or more socialmedia services 806 a, 806 b, 806 n. The publication engine 302 retrievesthe login information for one or more of the social media services 806a, 806 b, 806 n from the database 126. The user 802 previously hasprovided this login information to the ecommerce service 804, which haslinked it to the user's account. In an alternative example embodiment,the user 802 provides the log-in information in real time, in the formof a wizard or similar succession of screens that request the userlog-in to the user's account at the one or more social media services806 a, 806 b, 806 n from inside the ecommerce service 804.

The publication engine 302 also can access memory 808, which stores amapping 810 between the ecommerce service 804 and the one or more socialmedia services 806 a, 806 b, 806 n. This mapping 810 may contain variousfields 812 a, 812 b, 812 c. One field, 812 a, may provide information onhow to access the corresponding social media service 806 a, 806 b, 806n. Another field, 812 b, may provide information on what information toretrieve from the corresponding social media service 806 a, 806 b, 806 n(e.g., a listing of fields from which to retrieve the data and thecorresponding locations of the fields in this listing). Another field,812 c, may provide information on how to use the information retrievedfrom the corresponding social media service 806 a, 806 b, 806 n to formtrading circles (e.g., existing trading circles that be matched up withuser interests, other users with similar interests from which to form anew trading circle). The publication engine 302 may then access one ormore of the social media services 806 a, 806 b, 806 n using theinformation from the mapping 810, and apply the retrieved informationusing the information from the mapping 810, thus forming a tradingcircle 814 containing the user 802 and other users 816 a-816 n.

In another example embodiment, items listed on the ecommerce service 804(such as items listed for sale by a user) may be automatically sharedamong the other users 816 a-816 n in the trading circle 814. Thissharing may occur in the one or more social media services 806 a, 806 b,806 n. For example, a user 802 who is a fan of brand X remote controlcars, and who is a member of a brand X remote control car-trading circleby virtue of information from his Facebook™ profile, may post one of hiscollectible cars for sale. This listing may then be automatically postedon the user's Facebook™ page, but shared only with other members of thetrading circle 814. This allows for custom sharing of item postinginformation based on trading circles.

In such instances, information about the trading circles 814 may bepassed back to the one or more social media services 806 a, 806 b, 806 nfor their use, creating a symbiotic relationship between the ecommerceservice 804 and the social media services 806 a, 806 b, 806 n. Theecommerce service 804 may have its reputation ratings enhanced anddevelop trading circles based 814 on information from the social mediaservices 806 a, 806 b, 806 n, while the social media services 806 a, 806b, 806 n may receive trading circle and purchase information from theecommerce site.

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 900, in accordance withanother example embodiment. At operation 902, login information for asocial media service of a user of an ecommerce service may be retrieved.At operation 904, the login information may be used to retrieveinformation from the social media service. At 906, a reputation ratingfor the user in the ecommerce service may be altered based upon theretrieved information

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 1000, in accordance withanother example embodiment. At operation 1002, login information for asocial media service of a user of an ecommerce service may be retrieved.At operation 1004, the login information may be used to retrieveinformation from the social media service. At 1006, a trading circle maybe formed including the user as well as other users of the ecommerceservice based on the information from the social media service.

FIG. 11 shows a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the exampleform of a computer system 1100 within which a set of instructions 1224for causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein may be executed. In alternative embodiments, themachine operates as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g.,networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine mayoperate in the capacity of a server or a client machine in server-clientnetwork environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (ordistributed) network environment. The machine may be a server computer,a client computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box(STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a webappliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable ofexecuting a set of instructions 1224 (sequential or otherwise) thatspecify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only asingle machine is illustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken toinclude any collection of machines that individually or jointly executea set (or multiple sets) of instructions 1224 to perform any one or moreof the methodologies discussed herein.

The example computer system 1100 includes a processor 1102 (e.g., acentral processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), orboth), a main memory 1104 and a static memory 1206, which communicatewith each other via a bus 1108. The computer system 1100 may furtherinclude a video display unit 1110 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD)or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 1100 also includes analphanumeric input device 1112 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor controldevice 1114 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 1116, a signal generationdevice 1118 (e.g., a speaker), and a network interface device 1120.

The disk drive unit 1116 includes a computer-readable medium 1222 onwhich is stored one or more sets of instructions 1224 (e.g., software)embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions describedherein. The instructions 1224 may also reside, completely or at leastpartially, within the main memory 1104 and/or within the processor 1102during execution thereof by the computer system 1100, with the mainmemory 1104 and the processor 1102 also constituting machine-readablemedia. The instructions 1224 may further be transmitted or received overa network 1126 via the network interface device 1120.

While the computer-readable medium 1222 is shown in an exampleembodiment to be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium”should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., acentralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches andservers) that store the one or more sets of instructions 1224. The term“machine-readable medium” shall also be taken to include any medium thatis capable of storing, encoding, or carrying a set of instructions 1224for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform anyone or more of the methodologies described herein. The term“machine-readable medium” shall accordingly be taken to include, but notbe limited to, solid-state memories, optical and magnetic media, andcarrier wave signals.

Although the concepts have been described with reference to specificexample embodiments, it will be evident that various modifications andchanges may be made to these embodiments without departing from thebroader spirit and scope of the concepts. Accordingly, the specificationand drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than arestrictive sense.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R.§1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to quicklyascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted withthe understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit thescope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing DetailedDescription, it can be seen that various features are grouped togetherin a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure.This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting anintention that the claimed embodiments require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, subject matter lies in less than all features of a singledisclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are hereby incorporatedinto the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as aseparate embodiment.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system, comprising: a processor; a publicationengine configured to post descriptions of items for sale on an ecommerceservice; a database; and a reputation engine configured to maintainreputation ratings for users of the ecommerce service, the reputationengine further configured to: access login information for a socialmedia service of a user of the ecommerce service from the database;retrieve information from the social media service using the log-ininformation; and alter a reputation rating for the user in the ecommerceservice based on the retrieved information.
 2. The system of claim 1,further comprising a memory storing a mapping between the ecommerceservice and the social media service, wherein the mapping indicates oneor more fields of data to retrieve from the social media service and anindication of how to alter the reputation rating based on data in theone or more fields of data.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein theinformation from the social media service includes an indication thatthere is a mutual friend between the user and another user of theecommerce service.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the reputationrating for the user is altered only with respect to the other user. 5.The system of claim 2, wherein the mapping further contains a mappingbetween the ecommerce service and a second social media service, andwherein the reputation engine is further configured to: access logininformation for the second social media service for the user from thedatabase; retrieve information from the second social media serviceusing the log-in information; and further alter the reputation ratingfor the user in the ecommerce service based on the retrieved informationfrom the second social media service.
 6. The system of claim 1, whereinthe publication engine is configured to form a trading circle includingthe user and other users of the ecommerce service based on the retrievedinformation.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the publication engine isfurther configured to share information about the trading circle withthe social media service.
 8. A method, comprising: receiving logininformation for a social media service of a user of an ecommerceservice; retrieving information from the social media service using thelog-in information; and altering a reputation rating for the user in theecommerce service based on the retrieved information.
 9. The method ofclaim 8, wherein the information from the social media service includesa number of friends indicated for the user in the social media service.10. The method of claim 8, wherein the information from the social mediaservice includes an indication that there is a mutual friend between theuser and another user of the ecommerce service.
 11. The method of claim10, wherein the other user of the ecommerce service is a seller of anitem the user is interested in purchasing.
 12. The method of claim 10,wherein the other user of the ecommerce service is a potential buyer ofan item the user is selling.
 13. The method of claim 10, wherein thereputation rating for the user is altered only with respect to the otheruser.
 14. The method of claim 8, further comprising: receiving secondlogin information from a second social media service of the user;retrieving information from the second social media service using thesecond log-in information; and further altering the reputation ratingbased on the retrieved information from the second social media service.15. A method comprising: receiving log-in information for a social mediaservice of a user of an ecommerce service; retrieving information fromthe social media service using the log-in information; and forming atrading circle including the user as well as other users of theecommerce service based on the information from the social mediaservice.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the information from thesocial media service includes interest information from a user profile.17. The method of claim 15, wherein the information from the socialmedia service includes interest information derived from communicationswithin the social media service.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein theinformation from the social media service includes communications fromwithin the social media service.
 19. The method of claim 15, furthercomprising automatically sharing items listed for sale on the ecommercesite by the user with the other users of the ecommerce service in thetrading circle.
 20. The method of claim 15, further comprising sharinginformation about the trading circle with the social media service.